It was August 1986 when Katherine “Katy” Hawelka started her second year at Clarkson University. She was 19 years old and looking forward to the start of classes and reuniting with her college pals. As a bright, kind and hard-working young woman, she was set to set the world on fire. Her mother and sister (who was her best friend) dropped her off on campus and after settling in Katy went out with some friends. Unfortunately Katy would never make it to the start of classes. Her precious life she would cut short when she was brutally attacked and sexually assaulted by a monster named Brian McCarthy.

Please consider signing this petition to keep Brian McCarthy from receiving parole. Katy's family has to go before the board every 24 months to keep their daughter's killer behind bars:

Petition to Deny Parole for Brian M. McCarthy 

This book is a phenomenal resource and I highly recommend it to get a real look at Katy, her family and more:

A Stranger Killer Katy by William D. Larue 

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.